Adrestia
by N.J Jordbrukaren
Summary: Omega has been saved. All is normal once more. Or, as normal as possible where Aria T'Loak is concerned. Helping a Queen reclaim her throne should not come with so many complications, should it...?
**Adrestia.**

 **N.J Jordbrukaren.**

 **A/N:** _Something I've been working on. Not a one shot._

* * *

 **Cha** **p** **ter One – One Para** **g** **on Interru** **p** **t Too Far.**

"Commander Shepard, I surrender myself into your custody."

Despite the rage scalding the insides of every vain she possessed, those words, the surrender… it was something she couldn't, as an Alliance soldier, a commander and a Spectre, refuse him. The galaxy trusted her implicitly to make the correct call. Morally, Shepard did not get to pick and choose who was deserving of death and who got forgiven. She may have been the Saviour of the Galaxy, but she certainly was not God.

Petrovsky did have that back-hand coming, though…

"Shepard, I'm unarmed… and I can give the Alliance intel on the Illusive Man!"

Perhaps Aria was right. He could simply be begging for the sake of self-preservation. But the asari's anger was obviously blinding her. He broke the one rule of Omega. Something that anyone could tell Aria would not take lying down.

Shepard's jaw bunched sharply at the sound of his breathless garbling. She had promised Aria she would help her take back Omega, her throne, her empire. She should have known that the person who had ousted her would be punished with death. A fact Shepard remained unfazed by. Death was a regular occurrence within her lifestyle.

…But not following a very clear surrender.

"But, I let you… escape… Omega- I deserve mercy…"

Shepard crossed her arms, stare boring into the back of Aria's skull. "Is that true?"

She didn't even flinch. If anything, her grip on the General's neck tightened. If the bulge in his eyes was anything to go by. "Inexplicably." Aria snarled. "I think he'd agree now that it was the _biggest_ mistake of his life."

Shepard could now tell by the low volume of her voice that she was beyond anger. A place she herself knew to be dangerous. Aria was on a warpath, seeking revenge. It was no longer about him kicking her off her station. It was about her getting back her dignity. About showing the galaxy that this was what happened to people who fucked with her.

"But… this is… _murder_."

One word that set alarm bells off in Shepard's skull. It _was_ murder. The very definition of it. He had pleaded with her for mercy. Not Aria. _Her_. If Shepard let Aria end him, that would be blood on her hands. Not exactly innocent blood, but blood nonetheless. And she already had her hands covered in the stuff as it was.

"Aria, maybe we should think about this."

With a violent shrug, her hand was thrown off. Shepard grit her teeth again. Aria's determination was the farthest thing from healthy. "Hell no! Don't go soft on me now, Shepard!" the asari refocused and redoubled her efforts, leaning into Petrovsky to meet his strained gaze. A hand reached up, feebly attempting to palm her face. Biotics ignited, slapping it back down. "Oh, no. You don't get a quick, easy death." The blaring cybernetics, not yet healed, flared up behind Shepard's eyes at practically hearing the pleasure dripping from Aria's words.

Shepard had seen enough.

A dark purple aura lit up the small space as she ignited her own biotics, using the added strength to yank Aria away from him. "Stand down! You've won and now it's over!"

Aria turned on her, snarling even more than before. If she had been beyond anger earlier, Shepard didn't know where she had taken her now. Opposing biotic wisps connected and crackled with one another. An unspoken threat from both sides. Arctic mingling with amaranthine. Aria took a few steps closer, squaring up to the Spectre. She should have known better than to expect Shepard to back down. Instead, she met her. Their breaths beating harshly upon one another's faces.

"Have you lost your mind?" Aria's voice was dangerously low again. " _Get out of my way_."

Shepard didn't, and she had no intention of doing so. "No. If he knows anything of Cerberus' plans, we could use him." The look of disgust that shrouded Aria's face was enough to bring on another cybernetic flare. One that the asari witnessed this time. She never stopped to consider that Shepard might be just as outraged as she. Not that she particularly cared. Instead, she turned away, throwing her arms up in the air. Perhaps she could appeal to Shepard's better nature.

"Look at the chaos he has caused here! He has to pay for what he has done."

Not good enough. Shepard pinched the bridge of her nose as the General finally slipped off the desk, slumping on the ground at their collective feet. "And he _will_ , but not today. And definitely _not_ by _your_ hand."

Aria could scream. She certainly felt like it. But she was better than that. At least she hoped she was. She opted for a scoff, instead.

"Thank you, Commander."

Aria turned back at the sound of Petrovsky's broken voice, watching as Shepard towered above him. If she cared for those kinds of things, the image would have been quite a powerful one. "Shut up. I'm not doing this for your benefit." She… _kicked_ him. "Get him the fuck out of here." Aria was torn between calling Shepard out on her hypocrisy and bursting into laughter. She chose neither, preferring to watch in silence as Bray ushered the broken man away.

"Shepard," The woman in question joined her, leaning against the railing in that... _cocky_ way Aria could not quite decide upon. "I like to know what makes people tick." She spared the Spectre a sideward glance. "Especially someone I might… _need_ something from in the future."

Shepard's eyebrows drew together in a sharp frown. She didn't like the idea of being played and used.

"I want you to come clean, _right now_." Aria pushed off the railing, turning to face the irritatingly casual looking commander. "Have you been trying to work me? Validating me one minute and judging me the next?" A step closer. Shepard didn't budge. Aria was starting to believe she had tried to kill the wrong person a few moments ago. "So, which is it?"

Shepard looked away, down somewhere. Aria's fists clenched at her sides. Was she… smirking? Her disregard was a major issue.

"Come on, Aria. Have I really been that hard to read?"

She really was smirking. _And laughing_. Aria felt disgusted within herself that she had let this petty human get to her this way. She was a matriarch. Internal conflict of this scale should not be an issue. "You are the most powerful and baffling being I have ever encountered, Shepard." The Spectre took a few steps closer, gaze locking with her own. She should be pushing Shepard away. Throttling her. But… she wasn't? In all of her years, Aria had never felt like she was out of touch. Until today. She found herself taking her own step closer. "I have no idea where I stand with you and it troubles me."

Shepard grinned again. Aria hadn't noticed the angry red scars criss-crossing her face until now. She had to stop herself from reaching out and tracing the long one cutting across the length of her jaw.

"It's better that way. I'd hate to see you get too… _comfortable_." She pushed off the railing, making a move. "Don't forget our deal, Aria."

 _She truly is a dangerous person._ It was the last thought Aria had before she grabbed Shepard's wrist, stopping her in her tracks. "Shepard," She cursed herself for the foolish move. She hadn't thought before she acted and now she was at a disadvantage. Shepard looked at her expectantly. Aria grit her jaw. "I never thought I'd enjoy having a partner." She released the Commander, instead moving herself nearer to her. "Despite your glaringly obvious flaws, working with you was… highly gratifying."

Aria didn't give Shepard time to come back with a quip or any other kind of remark. Her fingers were in Shepard's hair, pulling her into a bruising, red-hot kiss. Armoured digits gripped her hips, dragging Aria flush to her own body with an urgency that Shepard had hidden rather well up until now.

It was a sign Aria took for acceptance. A sign she could continue. Not that she ever imagined anyone pushing her and her attentions away. Aria began walking them back to the sorry excuse for a couch tucked away in the corner, only pulling away from the kiss to push Shepard into the seat.

The way the Spectre watched her… it was a hunger she needed. Aria knew she was an attractive asari. Powerful, wealthy, intelligent. She had never needed someone to validate her. But having and holding someone's attention had always thrilled her, even if it was only for a single night. Aria ignored the spike of coldness that went through her at that thought. Let it go straight over her head as she straddled Shepard, arms looping over her shoulders.

"Shepard," Aria bit the Commander's lower lip hard enough to draw blood, smoothing the small imperfection over with her tongue. "Fuck me, _now_."

Shepard grinned. Only, this time, Aria didn't feel like slapping it off her face. "Yes, ma'am."


End file.
